www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Photo Gallery Photos of my one man pilgrimage to Hagia Sophia

I just wanted to share my photos from my visit to Constantinople......It was quite a thrill to actually step foot in Hagia Sophia and imagine what it must have been like to see Heavan on Earth.

That should be a required second pilgrimage for Byzantine Catholics (at least for the Ordained), second to a pilgrimage to the Holy Land of Israel.

Awesome!

I just wonder...I believe it too...
Another of them holds that two priests saying divine liturgy over the crowd disappeared into the cathedral's walls as the first Turkish soldiers entered. According to the legend, the priests will appear again on the day Constantinople returns to Christian hands.[77]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_of_Constantinople

Rose,

What you speak of is known as the Interrupted Liturgy or the Unfinished Liturgy.

According to tradition, the Divine Liturgy being served at 'Agia Sophia on Tuesday, 29 May 1453, was concelebrated by two presbyters, Catholic and Orthodox. (HB Isidore, Patriarch of Kiev and all Russia, had declared a disputed union of East & West some 5 or 6 months prior.)

When the invaders approached the Holy Table, the southern wall is said to have opened at the touch of an angel and at his direction the presbyters are said to have miraculously passed through the the wall, with the Holy Gifts in hand.

The door that had appeared in the solid wall closed behind the priests and reportedly will not reappear and be reopened until the Interrupted Liturgy can be resumed. It is said that when that day comes, the priests will re-enter through that same doorway by which they departed.

For many years, our Greek Orthodox brethren commemorated this Liturgy each Tuesday. I don't know for certain if that is still the case - perhaps Alice or Father Anthony can speak to that.

Many years,

Neil

Agreed Neil. We shall wait for that day that this will happen. It would be the best sight to see in almost as long as we can remember (even though we only remembered it in history books and scripture).

There has been talk of having both Christian and Muslim services (at different times of course) there some day but I'm not holding my breath.....it's sad to think of how the Greeks had conquered part of Turkey after WW1 (only to lose it) and that the French and British occupied Istanbul for a few months (not sure on the time frame).....oh so close!!!

Right, the French probably wanted to hold Latin Rite Masses there, and the English probably wanted to celebrate Protestant Worship there for whatever reason. Who knows?

The feeling I got when I went there - that the Muslims had conquered and they wanted you to know it.

Very intense - palpable tension - yet they did not destroy what icons remained (mosaic).

They could have chipped those off centuries ago.

Thank you Neil. I had never had the info competed for me before. That is amazingly awesome